Game Of Drones: GoPro Karma V DJI Mavic Pro

2016 has been a good year for drones and the market is showing no sign of slowing down, with more features being added to new models seemingly every month. GoPro and Mavic have both recently announced new compact quadcopters with a similar target audience, beginning and experienced pilots who want to take good quality images and videos with their drone.

GoPro Karma

SpecsIf speed is what draws you in then the Mavic would be your best bet with a top speed of 40mph, the Karma does come close with 35mph being its max. Portability-wise the Mavic would also be the better option. Folded it is 7.8 by 3.3 inches while the GoPro Karma is almost twice as big at 14.5 by 8.8inches.Camera
The Mavic’s camera is capable of filming 4k at 30fps or 1080p at 96fps and it has mechanical image stabilisation to give smoother videos. It can take 12MP stills and with gesture control it will frame and take a photo with just a gesture. The GoPro Karma doesn’t actually have a camera, instead it has a harness that is compatible with GoPro Hero Black 4 or 5 and the Hero Session 5.

Price
The Mavic costs £1000 whilst the Karma is £720. It should be noted however that the Mavic has a camera built in whilst the GoPro doesn’t. So if you already have a compatible GoPro then the Karma would be the cheaper option but if you don’t then buying the drone and a GoPro of similar quality of the Mavic’s camera would cost about the same.

Miscellaneous featuresThe Mavic Pro will be compatible with DJI’s new VR headset, the Goggles when it launches although pricing and release date are still unknown. Using the GoPro Passenger App, others can watch your flight through the GoPro camera and control it whilst the pilot is flying the drone, allowing for more controlled filming.